Macut: Regional Stability Is Not Just Political Goal, But Fundamental Need

Djuro Macut (BETAPHOTO/VLADA SRBIJE/SLOBODAN MILJEVIC)

The outgoing Serbian prime minister, Djuro Macut, stated in Sveti Stefan on Oct. 22 that regional stability was not just a political goal, but a fundamental need.

Speaking at a panel discussion titled “Region on the move: Western Balkans shaping common European future,” within the summit of leaders of the Berlin Process in Sveti Stefan, Montenegro, he said that Serbia’s full membership in the European Union remains the country’s strategic goal. Serbia, he emphasized, remains committed to carrying out the reforms within the Western Balkan Growth Plan, with the aim of the gradual inclusion in the EU common market, as an important step toward full membership.

Macut pointed out that regional stability was thus not just a political goal, but a fundamental need and that, through the enlargement process and continuous investments into peace and prosperity throughout the continent, the Berlin Process was one of the crucial instruments in accomplishing that stability. “A stable and connected Western Balkans is simultaneously an integral part of a secure and strong Europe,” Macut said, as conveyed by the Serbian government.

The prime minister said that the Berlin Process had shown to be a valuable framework for inclusive regional cooperation, where joint initiatives are turned into concrete projects and agreements that develop trust and contribute to the development of good neighborly relations. The remaining open political issues in the region have their separate, already established frameworks for resolving, with clearly defined mandates and dynamics, Macut said, adding that these mechanisms should supplement one another, but that any single one cannot, or should, replace another and change what they fundamentally differ in.